The new centre is dedicated to research on the interaction between the nervous system and the immune system and is led by one of Australia’s foremost authorities on CFS/ME Professor Sonya Marshall-Gradisnik.

“The NCNED heralds a higher level in Griffith’s capacity for state-of-the-art neuro-immunological research in the context of nervous system disorders,” she says. “These disorders are a major cause of neurological disability in Australia.”

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Looks like not excluisve to CFS/ME but is led by Sonya M-G, and the centre is being opened on Dec 2 as part of a CFS International Symposium on Griffith University's Gold Coast Campus.

A new specialised CFS clinic will be opened in Feb 2014:

The integrated facility will provide treatment to anybody living with the condition and will build on the research being conducted with participants which has shown a strong association between the condition and a dysfunctional immune system.

I do have a spare room but this place is SUPER hot, even for a Queenslander. Most people from colder climes would melt. It is however used for storage, and is full to the door ... I do wonder if I could get storage room somewhere and move it all. However I am still a long way from the institute, and public transport is not good between here and there unless you can handle trains. Otherwise I would consider helping people out for the short term anyway.

I am considering contacting the people at the institute and inquire about lodging, rooms, etc in nearby areas. The Gold Coast hotels/motels etc. tend to be very very expensive, though I guess it depends where you stay.

Now a place on the Gold Coast such as a several room short term accommodation apartment might be hired by several patients, and used as needed. Serviced rooms only cost a little more than a hotel room for a single person if I recall correctly, but tend to be out of the tourist district ... which is good, because Griffith University is outside of it too. There will probably be high demand times when no rooms are available though.

As a Griffith University alumni I can probably get some hotel room discount for myself, but it would still be very expensive.

If I recall correctly the hospital has or is getting some beds for ME patients, that likely will have nurses etc. who are actually trained to deal with ME by people who know what they are doing. That has to be a big plus!

For anyone with the strength for a little holidaying, which sadly is too few of us, the Gold Coast is a premium tourist destination, though much of it is energy intensive.

For me, it means either a two day drive or a plane trip away. I think when the clinic opens in February they'll be rushed by people wanting appointments, many from interstate, and they'll probably soon be able to recommend reasonable places to stay.

This is very important news. Elizabeth Unger, of the CDC, is going to give the opening address, participate in officially unveiling the center's plaque, and will deliver a closing address. Clearly, the CDC is giving its imprimatur to this approach to the illness. Major.

I don' t think they made anything public from the last symposium, but it would be really interesting to study these papers in depth. They'll probably hold off until peer-reviewed publication though. There are good people there, but they're getting through a lot in one day. I suppose they'll have informal meetings either side of this one though.

I don' t think they made anything public from the last symposium, but it would be really interesting to study these papers in depth. They'll probably hold off until peer-reviewed publication though. There are good people there, but they're getting through a lot in one day. I suppose they'll have informal meetings either side of this one though.

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yes maybe some networking going on. Dr peterson is there with his stuff and there is also some good research going on in NZ and they are at this meeting also. Theres a few there joining forces.

I wonder what there clinic will be like, which doctors and what sort of treatments are they going to use?? Is there going to be any treatments there that arent available to us now?

NCNED is a world class research facility focusing on the etiology and pathomechanisms of ME/CFS. Our research is focused towards identifying biomarkers of ME/CFS for translation into the clinical environment. Our specific areas of focus are:

I have liked the info ive read on Griffith uni. I also really like the attitude that seems to eminate, there is no wishy washy stuff. Its matter of fact in the attitude that this is real and they are just getting on with grabbing it by the scruff of the neck.
NZ Dr Vallings and Prof Warren Tate are going to this opening today.I thought that was positive too.
Thankyou Griffith Uni!

I used to be on the institutes mailing list but for some reason I keep dropping off, probably because I can't join their studies as a patient due to too many comorbidities. Most local advocates have been following the progress here, and I am an alumni of the same university though a different campus.

We know about the research, much of which is still not published. What we don't know about is treatment. However setting this up, plus other facilities, mean they can consider clinical treatment trials. Now that would be interesting.

I have just emailed the person i have been in contact with in the past through Griiffith and asked about there clinic for treating cfs/me. Is there going to be testing that is not available to other gp's and also what types of treatments will be used and or will there be any experiemental type treatments available. We will se what type of reply i get back??

There seems to have been some confusion expressed over the novelty of having this flow cytometer purchased and installed - to read the comments beneath Cort's blog on the subject:

Gregory G Cutler DVM says: December 1, 2013 at 5:52 pm
I’m sorry I feel like I’m in a time warp here. They were invented in the 50′s. In the US probably every large commercial lab, certainly every Medical School, any research facility- both Tufts Medical School and Woods Hole in Massachusetts, in 1986 ,when I was there had flow cytometers! Any work that’s done with HIV that looks at CD4 cells for instance is done with a flow cytometer. Much of cancer research is done with one. Heck there’s one out at the research lab at Bodega Bay for Oceanography research.

I would bet you that there were several in use at Ian Lipkins lab alone!

The idea of flying one from Incline Village to Australia for a flow cytometer makes me question the sanity of the research and researcher!

EXCITING day today!
Today we received our brand new flow cytometer. This is the new LSR Fortessa X20 Flow Cytometer.
Here at NCNED we are the FIRST in Queensland to have this and the SECOND in all of Australia/New Zealand.
We can’t wait to start our research using this!
Kind regards, NCNED.

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So, my question then is, is this flow cytometer unique to this institute, unique to Queensland, or Australia, or indeed unique to an ME/Neuroimmune research lab?

And what does such a piece of kit bring to the research into ME that we didn't have before - presuming of course that it is unique which seems now to be in doubt?